Court of appeals upheld a 6-year prison term for Fat'hi

HRANA News Agency – Christian activist and House Church organizer Fat’hi was sentenced to a six-year prison term, based on charges of “acting against national security through membership of the Christian organization Ilam, collection of funds and propaganda against the Islamic Regime by helping spread Christianity in the country.”

According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), Fat’hi converted to Christianity and was one of a high number of Christian activists arrested by the security agencies of the Islamic Republic during Christmas 2010.

US rights group outlet slam decision to uphold 6-year prison term imposed on Farshid Fat’hi.

In an email to The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday, Jordan Sekulow, executive director of the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), wrote: “Iran continues to persecute Christians simply because of their religious beliefs. Sadly, this nation is one of the world’s worst offenders when it comes to abusing religious and human rights.”

“Iran would prefer that the outside world never know what’s happening to these pastors – the imprisonment, the torture, and the executions,” Sekulow, whose organization aims to promote religious freedom abroad, said. “Iran must be held accountable for this abhorrent behavior. Iran needs to know that the world is watching.”

ACLJ launched a global campaign to urge Iranian authorities to release Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who has spent over 1,000 days in prison because he sought to register a home church and questioned the compulsory Islamic education of his children. Iran’s judiciary seeks to execute Nadarkhani.